The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1887-08-20
THE CITY MUST BORROW.

Salt Lake City has arrived at period
in her career when she must take upon
her shoulders a considerable debt, OF
she must cease to develop and grow,
continuing as she is, an overgrown VII
lage. We have reached a time when we
must expend more money than the
ordinary revenues of the corporation
will yield, or must do without those
things which are essential to comfort,
health. prosperity and growth. There is
no Intelligent, progressive citizen who
will say that the city has reached pro-
portions large enough to satisfy him,
and that from now on we should remain
ss We are, making no advance. and de
lying the spirit of progress which is
asserting itself everywhere around US.
All say we should keep abreast of the
times, moving ahead with true Ameri-
can enterprise, and taking advantage of
ever circumstance and condition which
will help us to greatness. In order to
advance there must be an expenditure
OF money There must be considerable
Incl ease Of the water supply, from one
source or another. There is to-
day q scarcity of water, which
ia some instances is oppressive.
The scarcity is not confined to the
dry beach which is psrched and
thirsty for twelve months in the year,
but extends all over the city with
greater or less severity everywhere.
For the next six weeks the drouth
will increase, to the injury of the
people financially, if not in their
health. The present population con-
sumes all the water supply
and would use more advantageonsly if
it were to be obtained. 1t will not do
to say that as We have not enough
water to supply the people now here, no
more must come; that We are too poor
or too much lacking in energy to OBJ
tain larger supply. 1t will not even
do to go along year after year, listening
to the complaints and standing off,
the appeals for water, even if no more
people were to come. The mains should
be carried to every inhabited block
within the corporation limits, that all
may have pure water in abundance.
Then the question of sewerage presents
itself, and the presentation is most
formidable one, demanding both con-
sideration and action. We have done
without sewers because of our poverty,
and also because the people argued
with and convinced themselves that
Salt Lake was only a village which
could not afford such an Improvement
But Salt Lake is no longer village. 1t
is one of the most populous cities in the
west, and if there are anything in signs,
is on the eve of great increase in pop
ulation. The indications point to
such an increase Of inha bitants
of Salt Lake in the near future
as viii give Us the right to claim double
the number of people now here. Is
there anybody who will say this pro-
missed influx shall be turned back be-
cause they cannot find healthy abiding
places2 Sewers mean the expenditure
of vast sum of moneys sum so large
in fact, that VS. fear the estimates of the
cost will alarm many of our slow going
economists. Then again we must have
more street ights-many of them. Do
our people realize that outside of half-a-
dozen streets, Salt Lake City is in abso-
Eute, utter darkness after nightfall, save
such light as is reflected by the moon
and stars? The people in the gloomy
districts painfully realize the fact, and
they complain sboutit, too, as they have
the right to do Double or even treble
the number of street lights now in use
would still leave the town one OF tn :
worst lighted cities OF its size and popu
lstion on the continent. There is truly
lust demand for material extern
sion of the street lighting system.
Then there presents itself the question
of street improvements. Nobody hopes
or expects paved streets, but there
should be something better than roads
which nature has prepared. We can
not expect this to be very attractive
city while its best and business streets
are covered by inches of dust in summer
and of mud in winter.
All. these suggested improvements and
Others which might be mentioned call
for money, and lots of it. The corpor
atoms income is little more than
enough to meet current expenses, and
that income cannot be increased with
out greatly depressing the people. We
must, therefore, obtain the money BY
borrowing, and look to the future, anC
to those who will derive the benefit.
from the improvements, to meet TIT
loan. We hope by the time the Legis-
lature shall assemble the people will b.
prepared to go before the body with s
petition for authority to borrow to sat
;oS- 49, oaada ord npoDara Tho oiy,